Team Rensi Motorsports

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Team Rensi Motorsports
Image:Rensi_Logo.gif
Owner(s) Name Ed Rensi, Sam Rensi, Gary Weisbaum
Racing Series Busch Series
Number of Championships 0
Car Number(s) #25
#35
Driver(s) David Gilliland/Richard Johns
Bobby Hamilton, Jr.
Primary Sponsor(s) FreeCFreditReport.com
McDonald's
Shop Location Mooresville, North Carolina
Homepage Team Rensi Motorsports

Team Rensi Motorsports is a NASCAR Busch Series team owned by Ed and Sam Rensi. The team has also competed in the Winston Cup Series, Craftsman Truck Series. and ARCA racing series.

Contents

[edit] Early Years

Rensi Motorsports first joined the Busch Series in 1999, fielding the #25 Dura Lube Chevrolet Monte Carlo for Jeff Finley. They finished 13th at the season opening NAPA Auto Parts 300, but Finley failed to qualify for the next few races, and he and the team drifted apart. Kenny Wallace took over at Nashville, and drove 18 races that season for the team, posting nine finishes of seventh or better. Rick Fuller, David Blankenship and Scott Lagasse drove two races a piece for the team as well, and they finished eighteenth in owner's points that season. Wallace returned again in 2000 with new sponsor Lance Snacks, and posted eight top-ten finishes, his best finish was 4th twice at Bristol races. Blankenship and Andy Santerre drove in the races that Wallace did not run, with Santerre finishing 3rd at Pikes Peak.

In 2001, the U.S. Marines signed on as sponsor. Since Wallace had moved onto Innovative Motorsports, Chad Chaffin began the year with the team, but after he couldn't finish highter than 16th at Atlanta, he was released. Rookie David Donohue took over at the Pepsi 300 Presented by Mapco/Williams, but he too, struggled in the ride, and was released after 12 starts. Randy Tolsma finished the season for the team, who finished 29th in points that year.

[edit] Recent Runs

After 2001, Rensi switched to Ford Tauruses and signed Bobby Hamilton Jr. to drive. After a slow start, the two began to gain momentum, and they picked up their first win at the Busch 200, and finished eighth in points. This success carried over into the next season as well, as Hamilton won four races and finished fourth in points. They would not be able to win in 2004, and after the Cabela's 250, Hamilton left to drive for PPI Motorsports at the NEXTEL Cup level, and Mike McLaughlin took over for the rest of the season, finishing second at the Stacker 200 Presented by YJ Stinger.

In 2005, Rensi signed Ashton Lewis to drive the 25 car. Lewis had five top-ten finishes and a fourteenth-place finish in points. The team also opened a second team, the #35 McDonald's Ford driven by Jason Keller. Despite a ninth-place finish in points, Keller struggled to run up front, and he left for Phoenix Racing at the end of the season. Regan Smith took his place in 2006, and had one top-ten finish. Both Lewis and Smith left the team at the end of the season, and will be replaced by David Gilliland and Richard Johns in the 25, and Hamilton Jr. in the 35.

[edit] Craftsman Trucks

Team Rensi began fielding a Craftsman Truck team in 2000, after purchasing equipment from Dale Earnhardt, Inc.. Driver Jimmy Hensley drove the mostly unsponsored #16 Chevrolet Silverado to a 13th place finish in points. In 2001, Donohue began running the #16, but after three races, the team shut down due to sponsorship issues. Randy Tolsma drove the #61 that year and was tenth in points when his team closed as well due to financial problems. He ran one final Truck race for Rensi in 2002, finishing 18th in a Marine-sponsored truck at Martinsville Speedway, but that was the last race for Rensi's truck program.

[edit] External links